Farm and CSA Update

Irvington CSA #2

Gabcast! Irvington CSA #2

The First Broccoli

I heard the most fascinating fact on NPR today: broccoli and other common vegetables are actually cultivars of wild kale. They did not occur in nature until mankind bread them for specific characteristics. I knew broccoli, cabbage, and others were related, but I had no idea of this fascinating lineage.

Here's the NPR Moment of Science podcast of the story and a Wikipedia entry about it, too.

Christopher

Irvington Guild of Artists' 2007 Collectors Show and Silent Auction

Saturday from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Bona Thompson Center. Learn more about IGA and their work on a public art piece at the Irvington Branch Library, too!

Christpher

Picking Up Special Orders

Please be prepared to claim and pay for your special orders at pick-up. You'll notice on your postcard a reminder of the items you selected for special order and the amount due. Please pay the volunteer on duty and enjoy your extras.

Please note that I am personally billed for special orders and am responsible for paying whether or not you pay for it. Last year, we did have some issues with this, and I just want to offer a friendly, proactive reminder. This week, I ended up with over $10 in special orders not claimed and paid for. That can add up fast for me.

Christopher

CSA Tip: Feeds and Readers

Keep forgetting to check the blog for updated information? Did you know that the Irvington CSA blog is feed-enabled? To subscribe, simply scroll down to the bottom of this page and click on subscribe.

What's a feed? Learn more at the Wikipedia post on feeds.

And from the shameless commerce division of the CSA: Let Google help you manage this and other feed subscriptions with Google Reader. I use Google services, including Google Reader, for all of my business and personal stuff and have found them to be reliable and affordable (read: free).

Christopher

CSA Tip: Strawberries

Every once in a while, I'll post recipes and tips for using your produce. By far, the most asked questions I get a pick up are: (1) What is this? and (2) How do I prepare this?

Have strawberries left over? I've found a couple ways to prepare strawberries that are just fantastic. I've used both ideas below with CSA strawberries I froze last season and the inferior grocery-store ones, too.

Roasted Strawberries: Yes. Roasted. They are delicious! Take the strawberries and put them in the oven in a small crock. I roast them at 375 degrees for a couple hours, stirring them every half hour or so. They sweeten and caramelize a little. You can add a little sugar or honey for more sweetness if you want. I've used roasted strawberries as a topping for ice cream or shortcakes. Last summer I even made a homemade roasted strawberry ice cream that was incredible. I just substituted the roasted (and cooled) ones for fresh called for in the recipe. Best strawberry ice cream I ever had...

Strawberry-Honey Refrigerator Jam: Even faster. I'm making this tonight with this week's strawberries. Throw hulled strawberries and some honey to taste in a pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly. Delicious jam! Keep it covered in the refrigerator. It won't keep long, but you'll eat so quickly it won't matter!

When you have great tips or recipes to share, email us at irvingtonagriculture@gmail.com so we can post it for the other shareholders.

Christopher

Small Change at Pickup

I'm switching from envelopes to postcards at pickup. The envelopes are proving unnecessary and actually fairly difficult to print quickly. Please look for a postcard similar to the envelopes used. When paying for special orders, just give your cash or check to the volunteer, and we'll take care of it for you.

Christopher

Natural Solutions Foundation

Some information from CSA Shareholder Amy Ireland: "natural solutions foundation is pretty vigilant w/ their activism w/ values that the CSA holds important, such as maintaining organic status, antibiotic-free and hormone-free foods, and so on. thought i'd pass on to you to forward as you see fit. thanks! amy"

Change Codex - Protect health freedom from Codex Alimentarius. Website contains information, resources, and calls to action.

Growing Goodness

We were contacted today by Growing Goodness. You may be interested in their site at www.growinggoodness.com.

There seems to be a great deal of material about organic food, CSA's, and other topics that may interest members. Their blog is great!

Here's a channel I previewed from their site about the CSA movement:

Lots more where this came from at their blog and site!

Irvington Community Supported Agriculture Update, May 24, 2007

Good day, All. I hope you are well. Some updates from the farm and CSA Group:

--Remember pick up on Saturday is from 12 to 3. We'll be happy to see you again!

--If you are traveling out of town, please arrange to have someone else pick up for you. We want you to have your goodies, so please remember we are surrendering unpicked produce at the end of the period this year and are not making follow-up calls to those who've failed to pick up.

--For special circumstances regarding pickup or other matters this week or any week during the season, please email us at irvingtonagriculture@gmail.com and we'll help the best we can. Please note that -- while I don't mind calls for emergencies -- I'd rather not be called in lieu of email as we have a whole committee working on this year's project. I may not be the correct person to contact. Please know we check our email daily and your written communication will get noticed by the right volunteer.

--Please note that we may miss emails sent between Friday afternoon and pickup time. Please let us know of things as soon as you realize you have an issue.

--I spoke with Levi early this morning. This week's share will likely include: asparagus, lettuces, salad mix, green onions, and strawberries. Possible other times include radishes and kale/chard mixes. Free extra herbs will also be available.

--Last week, we were only sent 30 shares of asparagus. Levi found a box at the farm that didn't make it onto the truck. Those of you who missed asparagus last week were very gracious, and we appreciate that. Levi will be sending an extra share of asparagus for those who didn't get it last week.

--There will be extras available for order at pick up on Saturday and through email during the week. See the column on the right for a list of available items.

--If you ordered extra items, please remember your checkbook. Please do bring the book rather than just one check. Extras come from more than one farmer. Depending on your order, you may need to write more than one check. We will have change available if you will be paying cash.

--We're still working on settling the volunteer schedule. We had registrants as late as this week, and it's taking us a minute to get through matching the needs with your availability. Committee member Beth Harp will be in touch soon. Thanks for your patience with us on this!

--While registration is closed, we are getting a little bigger with transfers from other Twin Crooks sites, etc. Right now, we have 55 full shares. We are the largest in the group, and we have a full 10 shares more than we did last year. Thanks to all of you who spread the word for me.

--If you think another site may be more convenient for you to pick up at, please note that Westfield and Avon are having difficulty filling, and we can transfer your share for pick up there. Just let me know and I'll help you navigate the process. Note that both Avon and Westfield have pick up during the weekdays. You will have to pay another transportation fee, but you'll also be refunded the fee (prorated based on the date of transfer) from the Irvington group.

Enjoy your holiday weekend. We'll see you Saturday.

Christopher

Sorry, we're full!

Irvington Community Supported Agriculture is full for the 2007 season.

If you would like to be a part of the 2008 season, please email us at irvingtonagriculture@gmail.com and put "wait list" in the subject line. We'll contact you in the fall with an update.

Enjoy the summer.

-Christopher

Almost full! Act quickly.

There is only one share remaining, and all half-shares have been matched. If you know of someone who wants a share, be sure to let them know we have one available. They can call me today at 418-7295 for help registering.

--Christopher

Last minute comments, questions, concerns?

With the CSA starting Saturday, we've had some last minute questions pop up. I'm happy to help in any way I can. If you have a last minute communication, please see the posts below to see if your question is answered. If not, please feel free to call me on Friday. My number is 418-7295.
I look forward to seeing you Saturday and to meeting many of you for the first time...

Christopher

Half Share Notes

Please note that Irvington Community Supported Agriculture operates on a mostly whole share basis. We welcome groups who wish to share their produce, though, and many of you are in that situation.

When you arrive at pickup, there are committee members who can help you through the process of picking up your food. Please note a couple important things, though:

--Pick-up is for a whole share. You will go through the line and pick from the bins a whole share of produce. From there, it's yours and your share partner's. The CSA committee will not be prepared to tell you how to split it or who gets what.

--We've seen share partnering work well when partners appear at pick-up at the same time and negotiate the splitting or when one share partner shows at pick-up and distributes from there. Please find the arrangement that works best for you.

--We'll have knives and cutting boards available all season if you need them for splitting some of the larger items that may come one/share.

It's all in the details!

Good day, All.

Some final details to cover:

--Payment and registration forms are very much needed. Please make sure you've dropped them off in order for me to have you set for this weekend. We are hitting the end of registration, and it's hard to tell how many shares are open.

--See below for pickup and volunteer details.

--CALL ME. I'm away from Indiana and will be traveling tomorrow morning and through the day. While I have internet access in the car, it can be spotty, especially as I'm going through these horrible southeastern forest fires. Please, after today, call me at 418-7295 with last minute detail questions, concerns, registration problems, etc. I'll help as best I can.

Christopher

Volunteer Assignments

As you know, Irvington Community Supported Agriculture requires volunteer work at the pick up site in order to be a member. Most of you signed up for volunteer dates upon registration, and some have called or emailed to inquire of the specific times.

Please know that Irvington CSA committee member Beth Harp is working through the volunteer assignments now and will be in touch soon. Don't worry, we won't leave you out.

Some members did not indicate volunteer dates on their forms. Please ask a committee member on Saturday to help you designate some available times. We have lots to do, and we need you to participate.

Christopher

First Pick Up is Saturday

Please stop by Saturday between 12 and 3 at 5857 East Michigan Street for the season's first pickup. The beginning couple of the weeks of the season are light, but Levi says that this week we can expect lettuces, salad mixes, asparagus, herbs. Radishes and strawberries are coming soon.

I've been away from Indiana, but Levi said it's been pretty dry. He told me on Tuesday that some rain would be a real blessing to push things up a bit. If you've had rain, great. We might see more. If you haven't, pull out your favorite rain dance or prayer to move the crops on.

Levi reports that planting is going well and the fields are getting loaded with plants galore for our enjoyment this summer.

More later...

Christopher

When is the first pick up?

Levi and I spoke yesterday. He thinks the crops will be ready for a May 19 start date, but it is possible that pick up may begin on May 26.

While you're waiting for the season to start, be sure you've completed your registration including payment. We don't want you to be left out. Registration forms are in the column on the right.

Also, note earlier posts below with important CSA information, including:

-crop list
-video of a recent visit to the farm
-recent farm updates

Scroll on down for the most updated information.

Please note that the committee will send email updates regularly but that the most up to date information will always be on the blog. Be sure to bookmark this page or subscribe to the Atom feed to keep yourself informed.

Looking forward to seeing you!

--Christopher

How do I pick up my share?

We're getting much closer to the first CSA delivery. As such, you may want to know what to expect at pick up. Here goes:
--Pick up is from 12 noon to 3 p.m. each Saturday for 25 weeks. You may come to the Myers-Nunn home at 5857 East Michigan Street to pick up your share.
--In the garage, you'll find a coordinator who can help you to your share and answer any questions you may have.
--You will have an envelope waiting for you that looks something like the example at left. Note that it is filed according to the share name you provided at registration. Let us know if we have any of your contact information recorded incorrectly.
--Simply sign for your share where indicated and complete the other items as needed, including paying for any extras you may have ordered (more on extras in a later post) and informing us of any concerns, questions, or extra orders for the next week's delivery.
--Bring your own bag or take one of those provided and simply go through the line of produce pulling items in the quantities labeled on nearby signs and tables. Note always that labels refer to whole shares. Half-share partners, please pull your share according to the labels and share with your partner as you choose.

Registration

Please be sure to get payment to me quickly. There has been some delay in folks making payment, and it's becoming difficult to measure just how many shares are available.

Please continue to spread the word. It looks as though some interested shareholders may not be able to follow through on their interest, and we still have some shares available.

I'll post those looking for half-shareholders in the column at the right in case someone needs a partner.

More later...

Christopher

Farm and Delivery Update 5/8/07

Good day, All. I hope you are well.

I spoke with Levi early this morning, and I have a quick update on the farm and the crops:

--Asparagus, lettuces, spinach, and radishes are coming in strong and will be the first crops delivered when we start up. The cold weather earlier has slowed things a bit, and Levi says it would be nice to get a good shower to push them up a touch.

--There will be a strawberry crop, but it won't be as strong as last year. Levi shared again how the cold weather earlier has affected this crop. See the video below for pictures of the strawberries in bloom. Notice the flowers with black spots that won't produce berries. These were blooms that started prior to the cold spell. Even so, there will be strawberries.

--Peas are doing quite well! Levi says that it's not going to be a bumper crop but that it will be stronger than the last couple of years.

--Our first delivery is scheduled for May 19 and will likely consist of lettuces, spinach, asparagus, and radishes. There is some possibility that the first delivery is pushed back to May 26 if we don't get some rain to push the early crops on.

Keep your eye on this blog and on emails from the coordinating committee for frequent updates.

--Christopher

Crop List

In case you missed it, be sure to check out the crop list.

The list is taken from a scan of the Avon group's booklet a few years ago, but the crops and schedules remain more or less the same throughout the years. Please note that other text surrounding the crop list on this document applies to the Avon group in the past. Information on costs, etc. is not accurate.

Registration materials are at the right if you haven't yet completed and returned yours.

--Christopher

A visit to the farm...

Here is a short video I produced after a recent visit to the farm to check out the spring crops. Last word from Levi was that the first delivery will be on May 19. More info to come later.

--Christopher